Metaphors & Similes



Laurie Halse Anderson’s Speak

(Figurative Language)

Metaphors & Similes

Anderson uses a lot of figurative language to communicate what Melinda experiences throughout the novel. Two figures of speech that Anderson relies on are the simile and the metaphor.

• SIMILES compare two unlike things via the words “like,” “as,” or “than.” For example, “Your eyes are like seas of enchantment.” In this case, “eyes” are compared to “seas of enchantment.” Figuratively, this simile expresses the speaker’s attraction to a particular person. The speaker is “enchanted” by that person’s eyes.

• METAPHORS compare two unlike things, only without the use of “like,” “as,” or “than.” The simile above could be expressed as, “Your eyes are seas of enchantment.” The meaning remains the same.

COMPREHENSION CHECK: Determine whether the statements below are similes (S) or metaphors (M). Then identify the two things being compared.

S M 1. “My lip bleeds a little. It tastes like metal. I need to sit down” (p 5).

________________________________is compared to____________________________________

S M 2. “I stand in the center aisle of the auditorium, a wounded zebra in a National Geographical special, looking for someone, anyone, to sit next to. A predator approaches: gray jock buzz cut, whistle around a neck thicker than his head” (p 5).

________________________________is compared to____________________________________

S M 3. “I dive into the stream of fourth-period lunch students and swim down the hall to the cafeteria” (p 7).

_____________________________is compared to______________________________________

S M 4. “Nicole is unstoppable at field hockey. She motors downfield so fast she creates a wake of flowing mud that washes over anyone who gets in the way” (p 19).

_____________________________is compared to _____________________________________

S M 5. “[Heather] is like a dog that keeps jumping into your lap. She always walks with me down the halls chattering a million miles a minute” (p 24).

_____________________________is compared to ______________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________

S M 6. “Victim mixes cottage cheese into applesauce. Dad snorts like a bull” (p 36).

_____________________________is compared to_______________________________________

S M 7. “…she is a gelatinous figure, usually encased in orange polyester. She avoids basketball players. From their perspective, she must look like a basketball” (37).

_____________________________is compared to_______________________________________

S M 8. “IT is my nightmare and I can’t wake up” (p 45).

_____________________________is compared to_______________________________________

S M 9. “Mr. Neck storms into class, a bull chasing thirty-three red flags” (p 53).

_____________________________is compared to_______________________________________

S M 10. “Three magazines later, my parents are arguing. Not a rip-roarer. A simmering argument, a few bubbles splashing on the stove. I want another donut, but don’t feel like wading through the fight to get it” (p 59).

_____________________________is compared to_______________________________________

S M 11. “I draw little window cracks of blood, etching line after line until it stops hurting. It looks like I arm-wrestled a rosebush” (p 87).

_____________________________is compared to_______________________________________

S M 12. “Mother is the rock, I am the ocean. I have to pout and roll my eyes for hours until she finally wears down and crumbles into a thousand grains of beach sand” (p 120).

_____________________________is compared to_______________________________________

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Name: _______________________________

Period: __________Date: ______________

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